I would like to introduce to you an amazing Army sister, friend, Veteran, Mother, Military Spouse AND Business owner.. whew.. that is a long title right? Yes, She does it all.
Kindra Paravecchia and I met over 16 years ago while stationed in Germany. I can't wait for you to read just part of her story here and for you to go check out her links (located at the bottom). Also check out the affiliates link for even more :). ENJOY!
I never had a doubt that I would be the first in my immediate family to complete college, even though I had no way to pay for it. A scholarship seemed like a must. I had always wanted to “try out” the military and so that need for college money and the desire to serve (ok, it was really FOMO of that military experience) collided and I went to college on a Army ROTC scholarship and graduated knowing that I’d pay back the Army with my years of required service. The Army is how Annette from A Wild Ride Called Life and I met – and we shared many laughable (well, funny to us at least) moments. Like spending part of our holiday break picking up trash from our Army school parking lot, navigating the shared yet often incompatible US military and German health systems while giving birth to babies overseas, and an epic multi-hour bus ride to the south of France while pregnant with our very non-pregnant friends.
I stayed in the Army for almost 8 years, gained a ton of life experience, and transitioned to being an Army wife, business professional and mom. I’m fortunate to call the Washington DC area home for the last 13 years. After several years working at a new, rapidly growing, government as an IT (Information Technology) ppecontractor (which is owned and operated by another Army Veteran friend), I had the feeling that I was doing work that inspired other people, but didn’t necessarily inspire me. I decided it was “now or never” to embark on a career that I was passionate about. So, I started my own business. I had always had a love of design and decorating and now I own, operate, and am the principal designer at Village and Coast Interiors. About 95% of my business is decorating homes in and around the Fairfax, Loudon and Prince William Counties of Virginia and the Outer Banks of North Carolina. Village and Coast handles a range of design projects, from paint color consultations, digital designs (I create a design and give you all the instructions to implement it yourself), to decorating a room, to a full-scale design for major renovation.
The other portion of my business is special event decorating. I’ve created designs for home-based parties and avant-garde displays for DC bars and restaurants and celebrity events that have been featured in People magazine. I personally love leveraging the creative designer side of my brain and combining it with the more tactical and pragmatic side of my brain that the Army helped develop. I think my clients like it too because they end up with not only a chic, stylish space but one that’s well planned, functional and thoughtful. If you’re interested in seeing any of my designs check out my profile on Houzz https://www.houzz.com/professionals/interior-designers-and-decorators/village-and-coast-llc-pfvwus-pf~1386318586
or visit my website at https://www.villageandcoast.com/portfolio/